Technology is typically transferred through a license agreement in which the university grants its rights in the defined technology to a third party for a period of years, often limited to a particular field of use and/or region of the world. The licensee (the third party licensing the technology) may be an established company or a new business start-up. Licenses include terms that require the licensee to meet certain performance requirements and to make financial payments to the university. These payments are shared with the inventors and are also distributed to the schools/colleges, departments/units, and central administration to provide support for further research, education, and participation in the tech transfer process.